For the first time in two months, the Mississippi River flows free past the site of the collapsed I-35W bridge.
"We've come a long way in a short amount of time," said Evan Mackey, Demolition Division Manager for Carl Bolander and Sons.
Demolition crews fished the last piece of steel out of the river over the weekend. Now they are finishing up a final dredge of that section of the river, then they will move on to clear the shorelines of concrete and steel.
Fifty to 60 workers from Bolander are putting in 12-hour days, six days a week. They're working fast so that construction on a new bridge can begin.
"It gets tough to get up and go to work in the morning. But they're seeing a lot of accomplishment and they're proud to be a part of this project," Mackey said.
Mackey estimates demolition is about 80 percent complete and that it will be completely done about the middle of October.
The Minnesota Department of Transportation estimates the cost of demolition to be $15 million.
(Copyright 2007 by KARE. All Rights Reserved.)
